Nixon, Haldeman & Butterfield on Federal spending and Vetoes

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Here's the problem.

Basically, all it is is a civic selection, $250,000 spent on it the rest of the time.

That isn't enough.

It's not disbanded.

There's no problem.

That can be done.

You may have to wait so that it goes a little longer.

But you have to be .

then there has to be these points made.

One, about vehicles, that I, if you'll read this, that if the, that is, so that I stand by the ratios of the bridge, that the, in the next few weeks,

The number of bills I've been warned will be coming to my desk before I see this man these days.

And many of them will be for good purposes.

I'm going to veto those bills.

Not because I'm vetoing what they were, but because I'm vetoing a tax increase for the American people.

And those who vote for such bills or vote to override those bills, I put on others right now, will be voting for a tax increase and must be held responsible for it.

then i would go on to say to add on something about property taxes for the other that is looking in the future one of the reasons i feel so strongly about the need to hold the line on taxes is that we must that we that is it's vital that we provide a property tax review and use what i said about that that i put in the fact that uh it's uh it's uh

Uh, can you read it?

Take it out of the e-shirt, please.

That's as much as you can suggest.

But Buchanan can, I'm sure, get a paragraph in it that will give it, it's got to have some more meaning, you know.

If I'm announced about that, he's got to say something more than I do.

So all that does is give a little civic structure, which is nice, but it's inadequately written.

So don't get that back to the writers.

I mean, I made all the changes.

Get it over to Buchanan.

See if he can get a little of that in him.

That's where you put a crisp, newsy language that is quarterbacked, son of a bitch.

I mean, the thing I told Ray is that he doesn't do.

I mean, he should have had a little pad on top of it.

Here are the things that will be leads out of this.

It's all right.

I mean, it's perfectly accurate.

It's a civics lecture.

I mean, that's all we have to do.

But I'd say the first one is actually a little better than that.

And the next one, I suggested, can we put, maybe we just better use Buchanan on some of the writing now that we, on this sort of thing, so we get more .

So it has to have, it is a campaign after all.

I don't mean to take on the government, but it's got to have sharpness to fight.

There's got to be some paragraphs with sharpness to fight in it so that people can say, well, he said something.

Rather than just sort of wobbling along with it.

Anyway, I've corrected you quite a bit.

But the main point is to get into the veto business.

And then also to what you've corrected.

I didn't go into the veto business, no.

What?

Look, he has the whole thing.

Okay.

What I meant is you get into the paragraphs of the veto.

And then you can get into something on that.

just right now.

I just sent you a text to me.

Okay.

Something about the fighting, the illegal thing, and I want to see the paragraph there.

And then something about the that we must have, that I

This is a national scandal.

We've got to provide relief in order to do so.

We've got to hold the line on spending.

And maybe we can put a back-end comment in there to the effect that when they talk about the new programs, so for example, this is a definition we're paying for this, for example, the spending program is estimated by the, or whatever it is, the spending programs of our opponents

of our opponents, who we don't have to be worried about doing, of our opponents, flat, the betting program advocated by our opponents, would add $100 billion a year and would require a 50% tax increase for the American people.

It is popular, too.

But I will, and that put in the line that I had said previously, where I had said, I think this pledge, I will not, in order to keep my pledge of no tax increase, that I will not, I will not, I will veto any spending program.

I've never even gotten that stuff, I say, or have it in here.

I will be from any bill of Congress which exceeds my budget, substantially exceeds my budget, if I conclude that it exceeds the service of the person who is over there.

Second, I will not make any promises in this campaign of spending programs that would require a tax increase.

I would say that looking to the future,

that my goal is not only no tax increase in 1973, but no tax increase over the next four years.

But we can meet this goal.

But in order to meet this goal, we must start now by not authorizing new programs, which would be buy now, pay later.

And that's why I'm going to read those.

And the other thing is, I want to get an idea of this report, but I will not be able to read this report unless we get support.

I'll give you about 30 minutes for our meetings.

I won't be able to do this without cooperation from Congress.

And I consider the battle of higher prices and higher taxes

major domestic issues of this campaign.

That's true.

And the choice is clear.

The programs advocate for our opposition to raise taxes without money by 50% next year.

I pledge.

My goal is no tax increase next year and no tax increase over the next four years.

That may be a little bit defective, but they're also going to cut the, and it is also my intention, after this, in submitting the new letter to the next Congress, instead of adding, adding new programs, expanding programs, making contracts and that kind of thing, that we, that we must, and then go in, but early, prepared for the question and answer on taxes.

We have four things in there that we've got to,

We've got to get rid of some old programs.

We've got to cut down on some other programs.

We've got to cut government flight.

And I pledge to do that if that is what is required to get a tax increase, to avoid a tax increase.

If it goes longer, if it goes 2,000 words, it's fine.

You know what I mean?

I'll speak to it in a minute.

The times are out now, I don't know.

I'd like to, I wouldn't be much as much concerned about this one, except it is for free.

Yeah.

And I will think it ought to be good.

It has been a little bit filled up.

Probably filled up because of the announcement.

Sure.

Yeah.

And the point is too, that they, the only thing they tried to accomplish, of course, is to not have the only thing.

And I said to them, we'll try to avoid the tax reform.

They said, no, I said, it's only one year.

Which is bullshit.

I mean, you know, we,

You look year to year, but you can say that our goal is no tax increase for four years.

But we need to cooperate with the Congress to do that.

Because if we authorize now, we cannot buy now and pay later.

It means that we'll have a tax increase later.

See, we can't.

Just kidding.

Just a question with the notes there.

We're getting into the break.

We need to get a little closer.

I think that's the line we've made by our own people.

Avoid good old... Yeah, yeah.

We feel convenient to follow that along the line.

I don't know what he would expect.

Well, better than what he got.

Well, you know, Ron, he's just, he's just exactly right.

The networks, he said, took the quality that they should have.

Yeah, they were.

There's no way they're going to pick that up.

Something like that, where they got all that news.

Okay, good, now she's broke for sure, fine.

He's doing well.

Overall, very.

Very well.

This is a shot here.

Well, he's speaking.

He's all the same.

He's the judge that ordered that there be no

And then, in order that no one can talk about the Watergate case because it would jeopardize the rights of the defendants.

He's absolutely correct.

In order that everybody... That's the best thing the last time I was asked was yesterday was about the mask.

Yeah.

You agree with that?

Sure.

Remember, I didn't say anything about the mask.

I just said that people were getting that.

Horrible people and so forth.

I think they'll do it.

I think Pat will see it.

I don't want to change anything.

Unless you feel it doesn't matter, obviously.

It doesn't matter.

You might as well get this much out of here.

Otherwise.

Okay.

Nixon, Haldeman & Butterfield on Federal spending and Vetoes

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Nixon Library Finding Aid

Also recorded on October 6, 1972

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